Revolution

Chapter 3

Luckily, there isn't anyone by my food box. After stuffing all of the food into my bag, we make our way back to where we met a few minutes earlier.

"So... where's your house?"

I tense up again and wonder if I should make something up.

"Just saying, allies tell each other things." Raven doesn't sound especially mad, just kind of annoyed. I'm still wondering if I should lie. "I'll tell you about myself, then," she says. "I don't have a house. Permanent residences make it easier to be tracked and hunted." When I don't interject, she continues. "I mostly just walk around. And draw." I look up questioningly. "Yes, I like to sketch in my free time."

I shake my head slowly. "I just can't understand why you're so eager to share all about yourself. It's like you don't have a care in the world."

She shrugs at me. "I can't live without talking to a human being. I just can't."

"So have you had any other allies?"

"Nope." Raven laughs. "The word 'ally' just sounds weird to me. We aren't in this to get something specific out of it, right? Why don't we call each other friends?"

I stare at the ground blankly. Will I let Raven be my first friend in almost ten years? "I don't have a house, but I do have a place to call home."

"Lead the way, friend."

Raven and I walk down a narrow alleyway. There's smudged graffiti everywhere. Raven sighs. "I bet these colors used to be vibrant and beautiful. It's hard to see the beauty when everything's covered in dirt and dust." Her fingers to trace the designs, as if running her fingers over them could re-beautify them.

I nod. Nobody wastes money on paint or art supplies anymore. Fine arts have slowly disappeared. I myself can't be artistic to save my life. "Why do you draw?" I ask.

"Why not?" Raven replies casually.

I don't really know what to say to that. "Cus it costs money..." I realize how stupid that statement sounds, but isn't money what our lives are based on? We get the end of the alley and Raven looks around anxiously.

"Where's your home?"

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna rob you or anything." I gesture to a tall garbage can that leans against the wall on our left.

"No way."

"It's right here."

The look on Raven's face is priceless. "I think that I'd rather roam the streets than live in a garbage can."

I laugh for the first time since my dad left and push the garbage can to the side. Behind it is a huge hole on the side of the building. I lead her through the hole into a room with a very high ceiling. My home.

I immediately start to store my food into a cardboard box while Raven looks around.

"So this used to be a bank vault?"

"Yeah. I'm guessing there was an explosion- that's how the hole got there. Someone probably knew that the bigger vaults were towards the back. I know because I've checked."

"Wouldn't a lot of people loot this building since it's a bank? Aren't you afraid of being found?"

"Sometimes I hear people come in, but anything with any worth has already been taken away. They come in through the front door of the bank, and once they look through the first few vaults, they give up. Not many people know about my entrance."

"I can understand why," Raven says, wrinkling her nose at the thought of the garbage can. She notices that I've left a crack in the wall where moonlight is shining in. "You didn't pull it back far enough."

"I did that on purpose," I explain. "There aren't any windows, so I leave a small crack so that light can come in. No one snoops around garbage cans anymore."

Raven turns her attention to my stack of cardboard boxes. "Aren't you able to afford better furniture?"

I roll my eyes. "It's a pain to buy it and bring it all the way back. And I can't risk anyone finding my home." I close the box and plop down onto my mattress. It lets out a high-pitched squeak.

She tenses up for a second, then starts to go through the stuff in my top box. "I heard that rich people have ice boxes that can keep food good for weeks."

"Me too."

Raven digs out a stuffed rabbit and holds it in her hands.

"That's from my dad."

She hurries to put it back. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't-"

"No, it's okay. He gave it to me when I turned thirteen, before he left."

She gazes at the rabbit, and I decide to ask her a personal question. "When did your parent...?"

"Last year."

"But... you're around sixteen, right?"

"I'm seventeen. My mom and I were close, so she didn't want to leave me."

"So why...?"

"It wasn't our choice." I open my mouth to tell her that she doesn't have to go into the details, but she does anyway.

"It was all my fault... I should've listened. My mom always ordered food at least a block away from our house. There were other houses around, but the neighbors respected her. I had just turned sixteen, and nothing had ever happened when we walked to the food location. I just thought... one block you know? It was just one block, but... I wanted to give us a break by ordering food right to our house..." Raven quickly swipes her sleeve across her face, but a teardrop escapes and falls onto the cold concrete floor.

"My mom and I spent the whole morning together. We were sitting together on the couch when I heard the buzz of the delivery. My mom told me to stay put but I told her that it was okay. When I opened the door..." She drew a ragged breath. "Someone had followed the delivery to my house. Someone was standing at my doorstep. The stranger pulled out a gun and shot my mom. He didn't even hesitate. I was scared, but I was able to turn around. I ran out of the back door and just sprinted for as long as my lungs would let me. I've been moving around ever since."

"Raven... I'm so sorry, I didn't think..."

She's sitting on the floor now, and she's sobbing. "Just one block... If only I had thought it through... I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye..."

Even though I haven't been with another human being in a while, I have a sudden urge to hug her and tell her that everything is okay like my dad did to me. I sit next to her and wrap my arms around her. I can sense her weak smile. That night we sleep on the cold cement floor, Raven and I.